The invention relates to mooring devices, and more particularly, to a docking apparatus for small boats which secures the boat to a pier by clamping.
Docking a boat can be a time consuming and challenging task. Many boat owners dock their watercraft at a dock where other boats are tied. The harbor is often open to navigation by motorized watercraft, which travels parallel to the pier creating substantial wave force, or wake, that forces the tied up boats to roll, pitch and yaw. Ideally, a boat should be tied to the dock cleats at the transom in three places—one in the center, one—at the port a distance from the boat hull, and one—at the starboard, also at some distance from the boat hull. Also ideally, a bow anchor is deployed to keep the boat in a stable position under the wave forces. However, it is not always possible in a busy dock, where many boats are docked along a pier. Boat owners therefore employ hanging fenders over the sides and boat transom to prevent the boat from banging against the pilings and nearby boats. Such measures are often inadequate when the wake is particularly strong.
There exists therefore a need to provide a device for securing a boat to a dock that would stabilize the boat in a more fixed position.